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Science Olympiad Wins MWM Excellence in Partner Innovation Award!

What an honor! Science Olympiad was presented with the Excellence in Partner Innovation Award at the October 2016 Million Women Mentors Summit in Washington, DC! We are so thrilled to be part of this incredible organization. The Million Women Mentors initiative seeks to involve 1M women in STEM mentoring roles by 2019 with the goal of increasing female success in STEM programs, apprenticeships, college majors and careers. Science Olympiad has joined forces with this powerful movement because of a shared desire to inspire more girls to choose STEM. According to STEMconnector research, 71% of jobs in 2018 will require STEM skills, but only 15% of female high school students plan to pursue a college major or career in STEM, compared to 44% of males. However, more than 3 in 4 female students interested in STEM careers who have a mentor feel they will be successful pursuing a STEM career. Together, we can close the gender gap!

Science Olympiad has long been a champion of women in STEM, both on competitive teams and in leadership roles throughout the organization. In 2016, women held nearly 50% of State Director, Rules Committee Chair and Executive and Advisory Board roles in Science Olympiad, and roughly half of all competitors on our 7,600 nationwide teams are girls. Jenny Kopach, Science Olympiad's Executive Director and SVP of Marketing Communications, has signed on as the Chair of the Million Women Mentors - Illinois initiative, hoping to aggregate and amplify the efforts of STEM providers and producers across the state. A State Steering Committee is forming, and Illinois has made an introductory pledge of 5,000 female mentors. Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth (IL-8th) has agreed to be the Honorary Chair of Million Women Mentors - Illinois! Please email Jenny for more info or if you'd like to join the movement!

Science Olympiad events touch every letter in STEM and provide an ideal platform for mentoring by female professionals